Vjestibule-hood for cars



(No Model.;V 5 Sheets- Sheet 1.

T. A. BISSELL. VBSTIBULB Hoon PoR GARS.

No. 453,782. PatentedJune 9, 1891.

(No Model.)

5 Sheets-Sheet 2. T. A. BISSBLL.

` VESTIBULE HOOD POR GARS.

Patented June 9, 1891.

5 Sheets-Sheet 3.

(No Model.)

T. A.y BISSELL.

VBSTIBULB Hoon :FOR GARS.

Intl un o'. I

.la Pff/or.

(No Model.) 5 Sheets-Sheet 4".

T. A. BISSELL.v VESTIBULE HOOD FOR CAR-S,

y1\To.4k' 3,782. PatentedJune 9,1891.

Humm

Sheet 5.

5 Sheets Patented June 9,1891.

T. A. BISSBLL. VESTIBULE HOOD FOR GARS.

(No Model.)

vNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

THOMAS A. BISSELL, OF BUFFALO, `NEW YORK.

VESTIBULE-HOOD FOR CARS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 453,782, dated June e, 1891.

Application filed March 16, 1891.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, THOMAS A. BissELL, a citizen of the United States, residing at Buffalo, in the county of Erie and State of New York, have invented new and usefullmprovements in Vestibule-Hoods for Cars, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to that class of railway-cars which are provided with end vestibules having'` hoods and face-plates, which form a closed passage between the vestibules of two adjoining cars.. Heretofore the faceplates of these hoods have been yieldingly attached to the vestibule, but in such manner that they were compelled to move laterally with the buffer-plate. The friction caused between the face-plates by the lateral vibrations of the cars produces excessive wear of these plates and interferes with the proper working of the car-coupling mechanism.

The object of my invention is to produce a hood having a face-plate capable of movement both laterally and lengthwise of the car and having a locking mechanism, by which the face-plates of two opposing hoods are automatically locked together, thereby enabling the face-plates to move laterally independent of the car and avoiding friction between the face-plates.

In the accompanying drawings, consisting of five sheets, Figure 1 is a longitudinal sectional elevtion of the end portions of two adjoining cars provided with my improvements. Fig. 2 is an end elevation of the car and itsl vestibule. Fig. 3 is a fragmentary longitudinal section of one of the vestibules and its hood on an enlarged scale andwith the innerV curtain removed. Fig. 4 is a fragmentary sectional elevation of two adjoining faceplates, showing the devices for locking them together and guiding their lower ends. Fig. 5 is a horizontal section in line w, Fig. 4. Fig. 6 is a vertical transverse section in line y y, Fig. 3, looking outward. Fig. 7 is a transverse section of the lower portion of one side of the hood in line z 2, Fig. 3,1ooking`inward. Fig. 8 is an enlarged view, partly in section, of the oscillating support of the face-plate. Fig. 9 is an end elevation of the vestibule, showing its hood and face-plate moved later- Serial No. 385,145. (No modelJ ally. Fig. l0 is a fragmentary horizontal section of two opposing vestibules, showing the position of the hoods and face-plates when the cars are out of line witheach other. Fig. ll is a fragmentary perspective view of the lower portion of the curtain, showing the flap. Fig. l2 is a horizontal section in line u fv, Fig. l1.

Like letters of reference refer to .like parts in the several figures.

represents the side walls of the vestibules, and A the end walls thereof.

B 'represents the stationary platforms of the cars, and B the movable platforms or buerplates, which are yieldingly supported at the front ends of the stationary platforms.

C represents the open frames, which are' secured in the opening or passage-way in the end walls of the vestibules.

D represents the arch-shaped face-plat es arranged in front of Io he end walls of the Avestibules.

d represents forwardly inclined arms whereby the face-plates are supported. The lower ends of these arms are Vpivotally secured tothe vestibule-frames on opposite sides of the end opening thereof by meansof brackets c.

e represents horizontal eyes or sockets formed at the upper ends of Athe supportingarms d. E

E represents suspension-rods whereby the face-plates are attached to thesupportingf arms. These rods are pivoted with their lower ends to the rear sidesof the face-plates at about one-half the height of the latter and arranged with their upper ends in the eyes of the supporting-arms. The upper portions df the suspension-rods are provided with knuckles or collars f, having semi-spherical lower'sides, which rest upon the upper sidesn of the eyes of the arms d, thereby supporting the faceplates. The eyes of the supporting-arms are suiciently large topermit the suspensionrods to oscillate freely both laterally and lengthwise,and the face-plates,beng attached to the lower ends of these rods, partake of l platel recedes as the butter-plate is pushed back in coupling two cars together, the upper ends of the supportingarms CZ swing backwardly and the face-plate rises slightly. /When the buffer-plate is moved forward by its spring, the upper ends of the arms d swing forwardly and theface-plate descends sli ghtly. The forward movement of the upper portion of the face-plate is limited by chains F, which are secured to the upper portions of the face-plate and the vestibule. Lateral movement of the face-plate is permitted by the suspension-rods, which latter are free to oscillate transversely,owing to the swiveling connection between their upper ends and the upper ends of the supporting-arms d. The upper ends of the lsuspension-rods are provided with anti friction rollers g, which bear against the upper rear sides of the faceplates and separate the faceplates from the upper ends of ,the supporting-arms and suspension-rods, so as to avoid friction and permit the face-plates to move with perfect free dom. Each face-plate is provided with two supporting-arms and suspension-rods, which are' arranged on opposite sides of the passage-way in the faceplate. The upper ends ofthe su pportin g-arms and suspension-rods arepreferably bent inwardly, as shown in Fig. 6, so than' the anti-friction rollers bear against theupper transverse portion or arch of the face-plate.

H represents linkswhereby the lower end of the face-,plate is guided upon the movable buffer-plate. -The lower` ends of the links are pivoted to upwardly-projecting bifurcated lugs 71, formed on the ends of the buffer-plate,

- as'represented in Figs. 2, 3, 4, and 9. `The upper ends of the guide-links'are arranged betweenrthe rear sideof the face-plate and guide-plates hf, secured to therear side of the face-plate. The lower ends of the face-plate terminate at a short distance above the'lugs 7L of the buffer-.plate and do lnotrest upon said lugs. The guide-plates h', secured to the rear sideof .the lface-plate, are provided with olfset portions h2', which extend `below the ends of the face-plateA and are arranged in 'rear of thelugs of the bulfer-plate.

I represents longitudinal bolts connectingthe guide-plates and the face-plate and passing throughV upright slots i, formed inthe linka-whereby the links are held between the guide and face plates, and the latter is permitted-.to move freely laterally and to rise and yfall. slightly.. That portion of each bolt I kwhich is arranged in the slot of the guidelink is surrounded bya ferrule or stay-collar ft", which prevents the guide and face plates from being drawn together tootightly, and whereby binding of these parts is prevented.

J' represents a sliding bolt arranged in one side portion or leg of each face-plate, andJ isa recess l'formed in theopposite side por-v tion or leg of. said face-plate in line with the sliding bolt. This sliding bolt projects with lface-plate, as represented in Fig. 4.

its front end through an opening j in the faceplate, and is adapted to engage in the recess J in the face-plate of the opposing vestibule. The rear end of the sliding bolt is arranged to slide in a pocketj, formed in one of the guide-plates 7L', secured to the rear side of the The sliding bolt is preferably curved upwardly with its rear end and provided with anti-friction rollers j2, which ride upon the curved inner side of the pocket, so that the bolt slides out of the pocket by gravity and projects from the faceplate in the normal position of the parts. When the face-plates of two opposin g vestibules are in line and bear against each other, the sliding bolt of each face-plate en-V gages in the recess of the opposing face-plate, thereby locking the face-plates against transverse movement on each other and compelling them to move together laterally. \Vhen, however, the faceplates are out of line, the face-plate of one vestibule strikes the sliding bolt of the opposing face-plate and forces said bolt into its pocket. The sliding bolts remain in their retracted position until the faceplates have been brought in line by the vibration of the cars. When the face-plates are in line, their recesses are likewise broughtV Vmaticcoupling in the face-plates.

K represents an outer fiexible'curtain or hood secured with its frontredge to the'outer edge of the face-plate and with its rear edge to the end frame of the vestibule.v K represents a similar inner curtain or hood secured with its front edge to the inner edge of the Afacefplateand with its rear edge to theend frame of the vestibule, thereby forming a double flexible connection between each face# plate and vestibule, which incloses the mechanism for supporting the face-plates. y

,L L L2 L3 represent bows conforming tothe arch shapeof thefaee-plates, andwhereby the exible curtains are supportcd'between the vestibules and the faceplates. The outer curtain of each face-plate is supported by an outer front bow L and an outer rear bow L. The outer front bow is pivoted'with its lower ends to the outer sides of thel guide-plates 71, on the rear side of the face-plate, and the lower ends of the outer rear bow are pivoted to the outer ends of the brackets secured to the end frames of the vestibules. The inner .front bow L2of the inner curtain is pivoted ICO IIO

with itslower ends tothe inner sides of the guide-plates h', and lthe inner rearbow is pivoted with its lower ends to the inner ends of the brackets Z. The supporting-bows mayl be secured tothe curtains in any suitablem'anner, but preferablyV by securing the same between they layers of each curtain, as shown.

M represents flaps which cover the links H and the guide-plates h', so that they are'concealed from view on the inside of the hood and avoid exposure to rain and dust on the outside of the hood. These flaps are secured along their rear edges to the curtains in any suitable manner, but preferably by a row of stitches, as represented in Fig. 11. The free ends of the daps overlap thelinks andguideplates and are firmly held in contact therewith during the lateral movement of the faceplate by springs m, secured upright between the layers of the fiaps, as represented in Fig. l2.

The faceplates and their supporting devices are so balanced that the face-plates have a tendency to drop forward or toward each other by gravity, which causes the faccplates to bear firmly against each other and form a tight connect-ion between the vestibules. Vhen the face-plates of two vestibules are coupled, they move together transversely independent of their vestibules, thereby avoiding the friction and wear between two face-plates which move laterally with reference to each other.

I claim as my inventionl. The combination, with a railway-car, its vestibule, and movable buffer-plate, of a flexible hood-attached to the vestibule, a faceplate attaehed tothe hood, and a laterallymovable connection attaching the face-plate to the buffer-plate,whereby the face-plate can shift its position laterally on the buffer-plate while rem ai nin g parallel with the buffersplate, substantially as set forth.

2. The combination, with a vestibule-car and its buffer-plate, of a face-plate arranged above the buffer-plate, and links connecting the lower ends of the faceplate with the buffer-plate by pivots arranged lengthwise of the car, whereby the faceplate is enabled to move with its lower ends transversely on the buffer-plate, substantially as set forth.

3. Thecombinatiomwith arailway-car provided with a vestibule, of a hood attached to the vestibule, a face-plate attached to the hood, and swivelingsuspension-rods whereby the face-plate is suspended on the car and enabled to move lengthwise and transversely of the car, substantially as set forth.

4. The combination, with arailway-carprovided with a vestibule and a yielding bufferplate, of a hood attached to the vestibule, a faceplate attached to the hood, swiveling suspension-rods supporting the face-plate on the vestibule, and transversely oscillating links connecting the lower ends of the face-plate with the buffer-plate, substantially as set forth.

5. The combination, with a railway-car provided on its platform with a vestibule, of a hood attached to the vestibule, a face-plate attached to the hood, a suspension-rod attached with its lower end to the face-plate, and a supp`orting-arm pivoted to the vestibule and connected with the upper end of the suspension-rod, substantially as set forth.

Vplate of 6. The combination, with a railway-car provided on its platform with a vestibule, of a hood attached to the vestibule, a face-plate attached to the hood, a supporting-arm pivoted with its lower end to the vestibule and provided at its upper end with an eye, and a suspension-rod attached with its lower end to the face-plate and provided at its upper end with a semi-spherical knuckle resting upon said eye, substantially as set forth.

7. The combination, with a railway-car provided on its platform with a vestibule, of a face-plate, a hood connecting the faceplate with the vestibule, a suspension-rod attached with its lower end to the face-plate, a supporting-arm pivoted with its lower end to the vestibule and supporting the suspension-rod at its upper end, and-a roller mounted on the upper end of the suspension-rod and bearing against the rear side 0f the face-plate, substantially as set forth.

8. The combination, with a railway-car provided on its platform with a vestibule, of a face-plate, a hood connecting the face-plate with the vestibule, a suspension-rod pivoted with its lower end to the face-plate, a supporting-arm pivoted with its lower end to the vestibule and having a swiveling connection at -its upper end with the upper end of the suspension-rod, and a stop-chain connecting the vestibule with the face-plate, substantially as set forth. y

9. The combination, with the railway-car provided on its platform with avestibule and a movable buffer-plate, of a face-plate, a hood connecting said face-plate with the vestibule, swiveling supports connecting the upper portion of the face-plate with the vestibule, links pivoted with their lower ends to the buffer plate and provided with slots, and pins or bolts secured to the lower portion of the faceplate and engaging in said slots, substantially as set forth. ,V

10. The combination, with a vestibule-car, of a movable face-plate and an automatic lockingbolt projecting from the face-plateand adapted to engage in' a recess in the facethe adjoining car, whereby the bolt is pressed back when theface-plates are out of line and is automatically,projected and interlockcd with the opposin g face-plate when the face-plates register with each other, substantially as set forth.

ll. The combination, wi'th a railway-car provided on its platform with a vestibule, of a face-plate capable of transverse movement and provided with a recess on one side, a rearwardly-ascending pocket formed in the opposite side of the face-plate, and a retractible bolt arranged in said pocket, whereby the bolt i`s projected by gravity, substantially as set forth.

l2. The combination, with a railway-car, its vestibule, andthe face-plate, of a flexible hood connecting the vestibule with the face- IOO IIO

plate, and a bow pivoted with its lower ends to the vestibule and supporting the hood between the vestibule and theiface-plate, substantially as set forth.

13. The combination, .with a railway-car, its vestibule, and the face-plate, of :L flexible hood connecting the vestibule with the faceplate, and a bow pivoted with its lower ends to the face-plate und supportiug the hood between the vestibule and the face-plate, subzo stentially as set forth.

Witness my hand this 14th day of March, 1891. l

THOMAS A. BIssELL.

. Witnesses:

JNO. J. BONNER, FRED. C. GEYER. 

